“God has His reasons”…or does He?

“God has His reasons”

Has there ever been a time in your life that you’ve been so displeased and disappointed by something, that you just had to do something about it? This post is inspired from this motivation.

While driving to university, I was listening to a Christian radio station in my local area. In the context of Christians going through hardship, I heard a statement from one of the hosts that when spoken, was burned into my memory:

“Just look at Job…God has His reasons.”

Or does He? Well, let’s look into what that implies.

The implication

Job, an “upright” man who “feared God” and “eschewed (put way) evil,” was a prosperous man with what we’d consider today to be a large immediate family; he was a good person – as was communicated in Job 1:1, Job 1:8, and Job 2:3 (at least). “Feared” is the Hebrew word, yare’ meaning “revered” (blb.org).

Job lost everything. All of his oxen were stolen, all of his donkeys were stolen, all of his camels were stolen, all of his sheep were killed… all of his servants were either killed or murdered (besides a few messengers)… all of his 7 sons and 3 daughter were destroyed… and he learned all of this over the time span of a few moments. If this isn’t losing everything, I really don’t know what is. We’re not even finished! He lost his health, and he even lost the confidence of his closest companions and his wife – my eyes are watering up just writing this out.

What was “God’s” reason(s) for this?

The implication of “God has His reasons” is that the tragedy Job endured was a part of God’s purpose or intention. Some say God does this because He wants to teach us patience or resilience (in that we’ll be stronger on the other end). Some say He wants us to trust Him greater. Some say He wants us to prove our faithfulness.

However However However HOWEVER: let’s see what God’s Word says…

The evidence

1. God is good

Deuteronomy 6:16 says, “Ye shall not tempt (try/test) the Lord your God…”, and I John 1:5 says, “God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” Since there is no darkness in God at all, and we’re not allowed to tempt God, why would it be okay for Him to tempt us with extreme hardship or trials to bring us closer to Him in some arbitrary and otherwise undefinable way – especially when all we have to do to nurture our relationship with God is simply read His Word and do His Will?

Realistically, if my Dad had taken stuff I cared about away from me randomly without any explanation, I’m not so sure I would be inclined to love him or trust him more. The expectation that trust in God is built upon crediting God with the REASON and CAUSE for our loss, suffering, and disaster, is an unreal expectation, and one that we must eliminate by teaching the truth.

2. The source of Job’s devastation was Satan

Job 1:12 (KJV)

And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.

Why did Satan have power over his substance? Job feared, and he later realized it and admits it.

Job 3:25 (KJV)

For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.

This “feared” is a different Hebrew word than the previous one; it’s pachad, which means “dread” – which is what we usually think of when we think of the word “fear.” If you read from the beginning of Job, you’ll see that he continually feared that his sons had sinned and not made peace with God. This consumed him, and he paid a big price for it. He paid a big price because all fear is – is believing in the opposite direction.

Fear is negative believing; that is to say, fear is believing in the opposite direction.

Trust in God

Satan found a way through the spiritual hedge God set up around Job [Job 1:10] at the only place it was vulnerable: Job’s believing. Don’t let Satan do this to you: Fear Not! My hope for this post is that The Word restores or strengthens your trust in God as an absolutely pure and good Heavenly Father that does not put us through trials to grow our faith, trust, or to make us prove our allegiance to Him…

But in the end, I shouldn’t have to convince you that God wasn’t and isn’t the source of our trials – it should be apparent from The Scriptures, and it is: the very last verse of Job chapter 1 reads (NKJV), “In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.”